India General Elections 2024: Dr Dharamvira Gandhi, the doctor on his third dose

Congress’s candidate for Patiala Dr Dharamvira Gandhi with party leader Rahul Gandhi

Dr Dharamvira Gandhi, a physician, is contesting the Lok Sabha election from Patiala on a Congress ticket. Inspired by Anna Hazare, Dr Gandhi joined the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) and won the Patiala seat in 2014. However, in 2019, he formed his own party and contested as an independent but lost.

mid-day spent a day with Dr Gandhi, whose daily routine includes meeting farmers and professionals. in April, after participating in the Bharat Jodo Yatra with Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, Dr Gandhi joined the Congress and secured a party ticket to contest the general election. He is up against Preneet Kaur, a four-time MP from Patiala who recently left Congress to join the BJP. Dr Gandhi claims that Kaur's switch will work in his favour, predicting a victory margin of 80,000 votes.

Dr Gandhi, an adherent of Stoic philosopher and Roman emperor Marcus Aurelius, said as he was on the campaign trail, an assistant was looking at patients in his clinic. "In my clinic, the poor are not charged. Similarly, there is a 50 per cent discount for tests such as CT scans," he said. The following is an exchange between this reporter and the Congress candidate:

Dr Dharamvira Gandhi, Congress's candidate for Patiala, on the campaign trail in the Lok Sabha constituency. Pic/Faisal Tandel

What is your background?
I've been a political activist since I was a medical college student in 1971. I was also a student union activist and member of the Association for Democratic Rights of which I was founder general secretary. I worked for migratory workers for three years in Ludhiana. After holding a government for 20 years, I retired prematurely as an assistant professor of cardiology from the Government Medical College, Patiala. I used to hold meetings with village youths regarding scientific temper and rationality and encourage them.

When do you enter politics?
I was into politics from my college days. But got into electoral politics in 2014. I was inspired by Anna Hazare's anti-corruption movement. Later, I was offered a ticket by AAP and I accepted the challenge. I was elected as an MP in 2014.

What was it like contesting on an AAP ticket?
It was tough, but at the time, AAP was a newly formed party with lot of promises. It was different from traditional parties and it had already won many seats in Delhi and formed the government there. It was good to join a party to improve the system.

Then why did you leave the party in 2015?
I soon grew frustrated with AAP. There was no transparency and too much VIP culture. It was a total fraud. This was a party rife with conspiracies and insincerity. What they propagated earlier and what they became are two different things. When a national council meeting was held, the party's behaviour towards Prashant Bhushan and Yogendra Yadav was quite insulting and undemocratic. I took their side.

How did you manage to continue as an MP?
I worked as an unattached MP in Lok Sabha from 2015 to 2019. I raised issues related to Punjab and the nation as well as international matters. I was involved in nine bills, including the NDPS (Amendment) and Sikh marriage bills.

How did you come across Rahul Gandhi?
During the Bharat Jodo Yatra, I met Rahul and found him and the right kind of person to associate with. During the yatra, I met him first at Kanyakumari. Later, he came to Punjab where I met him again. After that, I was with him in Jammu and Kashmiri for five days. My brief association with the Congress started this way.

When did you join Congress?
I joined the party in April and was offered a ticket to contest from the Patiala constituency. Looking at my political and activist background, they gave me an opportunity.

After leaving AAP you also established your own party.
I formed a party in 2019 and fought the Lok Sabha election that year but lost it as I received more than one lakh votes.

Why did you decide to join Congress?
Their agenda is the right one. I have taken a democratic stand. It also suits my political interests.

What do you think about BJP candidate Preneet Kaur, the incumbent MP who left Congress recently?
She is nowhere. You will see after the results are declared.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi campaigned for her recently. Shouldn't Rahul Gandhi come here to campaign for you?
He will come this weekend.

What are your views on the farmers protesting at Punjab-Haryana border?
Congress had said it would increase the minimum support price for crops. Once we come to power, loans will also be waived.

AAP and Congress are allies but not in Punjab. Why?
Because Congress is the principal Opposition party here. If they were allies, the anti-incumbency factor of AAP would rub off on us. Delhi is different as Congress is no more there. So, we cannot afford to have an alliance with them in Punjab.

Will this benefit the BJP here?
The BJP has no base in Punjab. See how huge the farmer agitation is here. This is basically an agricultural area. Rural Punjab is anti-BJP. Apart from some RSS members and others, no one wants the BJP here.

How many votes will you get?
I will win by a margin of 80,000 votes and the results will come per the response and reaction I am getting on the field.

What issues will you raise if you win?
Secularism and the misuse of Central agencies. The media should be free from Narendra Modi and the BJP. Selling out the nation should be stopped. Minorities should be given justice. The CAA and NRC should be scrapped and all the bad laws imposed by BJP should be stopped. It will take us almost 20 years to repair the damage that has been caused by the BJP during its tenure.

Why should citizens vote for you?
I stand for the rights of the state and citizens. India is diverse, and diversity should be respected.